


Endless Night

by Tarlan



Series: Dark Gift [7]
Category: The Magnificent Seven (TV), Vampire Chronicles - Anne Rice
Genre: Angst, Crossover, Drama, M/M, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-12-27
Updated: 2004-12-27
Packaged: 2017-10-19 17:33:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/203382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tarlan/pseuds/Tarlan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A figure from Chris's past causes pain for all of them in the present.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Endless Night

**Author's Note:**

> Follows the events of Anne Rice's **Queen of the Damned**. A possible SEQUEL to **Promises in the Dark**. Written for the E-day July 2002 Commitment challenge. This (Dark Gift) Vampire AU is open to all anyone who wants to come play in it - Het, Slash or Gen.

Chris raced across the night sky, moving so fast that no mortal eye would ever notice his passing though, right now, he cared not for what mortal man might see or think. He was racing against the rising sun, desperate to reach Vin before the cruel sunlight striped across the already lightening sky and he fell like Icarus to his doom in a fiery ball.

If he truly needed air to breathe then he would have been hyperventilating from the adrenaline rush borne of the greatest fear he had encountered in his long life. Somewhere ahead was his lover and soulmate, staked out upon the unrelenting earth to greet the dawn's first deadly fingers. If its caress should reach Vin first then it would be the end of their eternity on Earth for Chris swore he would never be parted from Vin, preferring to join his soulmate in oblivion rather than carry on alone.

As he flew faster, pushing every ounce of energy into the headlong flight, his thoughts flashed back to a past he had truly believed turned to ashes but, like a Phoenix, it had risen to tear at them with beak and claw.

****

**Five Days Earlier:**

Had it been less than a week since he had witnessed the spontaneous combustion of several Vampires, and sensed the death screams of so many hundreds more?

For Chris that had been one of those rare nights that he and Vin had spent apart but his initial fear for Vin had faded quickly when the vibrant bond between them had shimmered softly back into life. Within an hour he had traveled many miles, his body slamming into Vin's mid-air and holding him tight. His mouth had sought Vin's and he had tasted the beloved uniqueness of his eternal companion as they sank to the forest beneath them. The mental bond he shared with Vin had reaffirmed itself completely, flaring brightly as they writhed towards a climax so hard and fast that they had screamed out in release, swallowing each other's cry of completion in joyous thanksgiving.

For several minutes following, Chris had lain in silence upon the dark mountainside, wrapped in Vin's embrace, unheeding of the sharp pine needles that covered the rich earth beneath his partially clothed and sticky body. No words had passed between them as he bathed in soft moonlight while the glow from the strong silvery thread that bound them--heart, body and soul--spread its welcome warmth through him.

Then, after the initial fear had dampened, Chris had opened his mind to the world about them, seeking the slender links that bound him and Vin to five other special Vampires--their children. But all he had met was a continued silence outside of the bond he shared with Vin.

Until then, he had been unaware of the subliminal echo of their Vampire heritage that ran through each of them; an echo that resounded deep within, emanating from all of those across the world who shared in the Dark Gift; an echo that had been silenced. But more importantly, the familial links that he had been aware of since becoming a Vampire had been silenced too, leaving him in fear for the well being of their friends.

He and Vin had spent the next two nights searching for the missing ones, traveling swiftly between cities and favorite haunts in the hope of finding at least one of the others still alive.

Their search had taken them into the lurid, neon-lit streets that Buck loved to haunt and Chris smiled as he recalled the soft touch upon his mind when Buck approached. Strangely enough, once he had reaffirmed his link with his oldest friend then all the other familial bonds began to shimmer inside his mind once more.

Chris smiled softly.

Mortal lore had often described Vampires as soulless beings with no compassion and no love for any other, consumed only by the need to kill--to feed--in order to survive, like some mindless animal. Chris knew that was not true every time he looked upon Vin Tanner, or upon one of the other five men who shared his extended existence. He knew that what he felt was stronger than an animal's need for companionship. He knew that what he felt with Vin was the deepest form of love having already experienced what now seemed a pale reflection of that same love within his mortal life--with Sarah.

Finding Buck had shown him that this love stretched even further, encompassing the five men who had become his dearest friends since their first meeting over a century before. Learning that all had survived the Calamity had brought even greater joy to him.

Buck had passed on a message, letting him know the intention of meeting at the old ghost town that had given birth to their long friendship more than a century ago. And that was where they were gathered when, four days after the Calamity, the slender thread that linked all of their kind made itself known to Chris again, but this time they all heard a summons within that link.

However, judging by the weakness of the call there seemed to be so few Vampires left on the Earth, but never before had there been such a call to a gathering of Vampires, and so the Seven had felt compelled to answer that call.

They moved swiftly as the inky fingers of night cast away the last fading rays of daylight, awakening them from their resting-places around the old town. They all knew that this latest summons had something to do with the terrible calamity that had wreathed destruction upon those in possession of the Dark Gift.

Chris was grateful that one of the gifts they had inherited from Lestat was the power of flight, yet still it took two nights to reach the gathering place as they crossed the Atlantic Ocean to the Old Country.

They landed softly on the cold, verdant grass outside of the Bavarian castle that had served the Vampire kind for millennia. The history of the place seeped into Chris's flesh as he laid his hand upon the cold stone balustrade, hearing it tell its story to him in whispers etched in time. This place had been razed to the ground many times during civil unrest, and in the Dark Ages of Man. Superstitious beliefs had brought mortals storming the buildings and opening the crypts so overzealous priests could poor Holy Water onto the desiccated remains laying within. Legends were told of Vampires slain but, in truth, none of his kind had been found here, for their resting places were far more cunningly concealed beneath the castle.

As they entered the Great Hall, Chris drew Vin's attention to the small number of groups set apart from each other in the immensity of the hall.

"Looks just like the kind of family gathering I imagined," Vin whispered back.

A smile flitted across Chris's face but then his thoughts became melancholy. There were so few of them present, and yet Chris sensed that his own small group was the last ones expected at this gathering. He made a mental tally, counting barely two hundred present in a room that could hold more than five times as many in comfort.

His eyes flicked to the far end of the hall where two of the oldest of their kind stood motionless. Their stillness and the paleness of their hard, alabaster flesh made them appear as though they were sculpted out of marble. Staged around them, like minor royalty at court, were the Old Ones; eternal in their youth and beauty, yet ancient in years but Chris's eyes fell upon the flamboyantly dressed, lithe figure that flitted between them all with such confidence.

As Chris stepped forward with Vin by his side, Lestat turned as if only just becoming aware of their presence.

"Vincent! Christopher!"

He grinned broadly, baring needle-sharp incisors, with his arms raised high in theatrical welcome as he offered his embrace to his children, but Chris could read his very real affection in the piercing gray-blue eyes. As the elder of them, Vincent stepped forward first, sharing a loving kiss with their sire, and then he stepped back as Lestat drew Chris into his embrace.

Lestat held Chris tightly for a moment before bestowing a sweet kiss upon his lips but then he pulled back slightly. His hand raised to push back the strand of golden hair that was forever falling across Chris's eyes, and then he leaned forward to plant a second gentle kiss upon Chris's forehead.

"My Christopher. So beautiful."

Chris smiled wryly.

A bond of friendship had existed between Chris and Vin from the moment they first set eyes upon each other over a dusty street. However, it was not until _death_ claimed Vin that they both realized how much deeper that friendship went from mere brothers-in-arms. With mortal inhibitions cast aside, Vin had wanted Chris to be with him for all time as his eternal companion, and Lestat had granted that wish on a whim.

He had learned all of this as Lestat's sharp teeth sank deep into his mortal throat as their minds' linked in a macabre bond while Lestat drew the lifeblood from him, sealing his fate. Yet in those few minutes, as he hung between life and death, he had shared with Lestat all that he had once been. He had shared his boisterous youth, his undying love for his wife and child, and the horror of their loss. He had shared his desire for revenge, and his shock at discovering the obsession of a madwoman, and then he had revealed the depth of his passion for Vin. In return he had felt the first stirring of Lestat's love for him. That love seemed to swell within Lestat as Chris accepted the gift of endless night from him, greedily feasting on his own blood welling from Lestat's pale breast... and then the link between hunter and prey had severed as they became sire and child.

Now, as Chris stared deep into his sire's gray-blue eyes, he could see the love for him shining there; a love that continued to grow with each passing year.

Chris stepped away and turned to gaze upon his eternal lover as Vin greeted their brother, Louis, smiling at the pleasure that lighted the face of the often melancholy Vampire. Looking at them standing together, Chris could understand why Lestat had chosen Vin that first night. Louis and Vin shared so many traits. Both had rich brown hair that cascaded in soft curls to their shoulders. Both had eyes that shone like jewels--sapphire and emerald--and skin the colour of creamy coffee, almost Creole in hue, and both were filled with the same gentle yet vibrant spirit.

Louis smiled softly at him, having read his thoughts easily, and then the moment passed as other introductions were swiftly made. Then, as if no longer wary of the differences between the various family lines, all present gathered close to hear the history of their kind from the most ancient among them. Maharet spoke of the beginning, of the King and Queen who had become the first ones to be given the Dark Gift from the demon, Amel. Then she spoke of how Lestat had awoken Queen Akasha from her long slumber, setting loose a terrible and swift Calamity upon all of their kind.

Chris glanced at Vin as the tale unfolded, hearing of the Queen's wrath as she reached out to smite all those she deemed unworthy of the Dark Gift. He learned of her plan to destroy most mortal men in order to leave the world a haven for womankind to worship her.

Just as Chris had suspected, only the ancient ones, and a select few of the old ones with some of their line--mostly the females--had been spared her wrath. But she had also spared Lestat and all of his line so whatever Lestat had done to awaken her had not incurred any great anger towards him.

Maharet fell silent leaving Marius, a two thousand-year-old vampire who had been the guardian of Akasha, to assure them all that the danger had passed. Queen Akasha had been destroyed, her essence passed to the Maharet's twin. Mekare had consumed the brain and heart of Akasha, becoming the new Queen of the Damned, and had been borne away to a safe place. While she lived then so would the Vampire race, but all would perish if any harm should befall her.

Despite Marius's assurances, Chris felt his senses heighten in warning as he listened to the strange tale unfold. The prickle against his mind made him look closer at the night creatures gathered around him... and then he saw her, partially hidden in the gathering.

Ella Gaines.

He had sought her after Lestat had given him the Dark Gift but, after many decades, he had found no trace of her existence. Eventually he had assumed her to be dead having either lived out her mortal life hidden away from his vengeance, or perhaps murdered by one of her intended victims. Whichever the case, he had believed that she was beyond his reach, and though Chris had mourned the loss of his chance to take revenge for his murdered wife and child, he had accepted that Time had dealt her vengeance on his behalf.

Now that had all changed and he stared at her in shock as he realised that, somehow, she had found immortality just as he had, and worse still, that she had been deemed worthy enough to be spared the wrath of the old Queen. As shock gave way to fury, Chris started towards her, pushing his way through the gathering and cursing when strong arms gripped him tightly around the biceps, holding him back. He looked from Louis to Vin, seeing equal rage in eyes focused on the malevolent creature but still they held him back.

The remaining Vampires standing between him and Ella moved aside, leaving him a clear path but Vin and Louis held on tighter still.

"Ain't the time or place, Chris." Vin's strong, clear thought cut through the fury that fogged his mind.

The vampire that had sired Ella Gaines took his place at her shoulder, arms wrapping around his softly smiling child, his pale blue eyes stabbing into Chris in warning. A smirk crossed his thin lips as if he knew the history between Chris and Ella, and then Chris realised that he would have seen all of her blackness and obsession when he drained the blood from her before giving her the Dark Gift.

Chris swallowed hard, giving silent assurances to his brothers that he would not leap for her throat should they loosen their grip upon him. As the fury lessened its hold upon him he sensed the presence of the others at his back knowing that his friends, and even his sire, had drawn close to offer their support.

Lestat stepped between Chris and his nemesis, and though his beautiful face held an easy smile his eyes were as cold and hard as gems. He addressed the vampire protecting Ella Gaines.

"Cornelius. Such a pleasure to see you after so many centuries."

Cornelius gave a mocking half bow, and Chris could see that there was no love lost between the two as Lestat all but bared his incisors at the cruel face opposite. It was only when Lestat turned his back on Cornelius that Chris felt the first tingles along his spine that forewarned the coming dawn. Lestat smiled wryly at him.

"Come, Christopher. Dawn approaches." His eyes rose to take in the group who stood protecting Chris's back. "Arrangements have been made for you to rest here today."

Chris cast one last baleful look at Ella, hating her all the more for the hunger that leaped into her eyes as she consumed his form with her unwanted lust, and then the others drew him away.

 _She's not going anywhere, Cowboy,_ came Vin's soft whisper through the bond they shared, and Chris had to admit that it was true.

Nonetheless, he didn't intend to spend the rest of eternity hunting her down just so he could exact his revenge upon her. If he had his way then she would not live long enough to see the sunset tomorrow, but he had to accept that he could do nothing while she was under the watchful eyes of her sire, Cornelius.

Lestat led them deep into the crypt and then beyond through a secret doorway into the dark passages that would lead to the rooms that had been constructed more than a millennia ago to protect their kind. Lestat halted outside one thick oaken door. It moved with ease beneath his inhuman strength and revealed a pleasant anteroom with several more rooms leading off. Chris knew these rooms had never been breached by mortals bent on destroying Vampires, but someone had kept them clean and elegantly modern, ready to be used at a moment's notice.

Even though they were deep underground, Chris could still feel the pull of the dawn upon him as a lassitude crept across his mind. He watched through hooded eyes as Buck, JD, Nathan, Ezra and Josiah moved into some of the rooms radiating off from the anteroom, watching the doors close firmly behind them. Vin's touch sent a shiver of pleasure through him and, almost childlike, he allowed his lover to guide him into another room. Within moments he was naked beneath silken sheets with his lover curled up by his side.

He smiled as Vin's beautiful features filled his sight as his eyes slowly closed, with his body wrapped in his lover's cold embrace, and his soul cocooned within the warmth of Vin's love.

Just as sleep overtook him, Chris heard a voice that whispered softly, as if coming from a great distance, "Sleep well," and then he felt the ghost of a gentle kiss, bestowed upon him by Lestat before his sire departed to find his own daytime rest.

And then there was nothing--not even dreams--as the sun rose in the land far above their resting place.

****

When he awoke, Vin still lay cradled in his arms with the shimmering red, gold and brown of his hair fanned out over Chris's shoulder. His face held such peace, his pale lips almost pouting as if begging to be kissed. His skin held just a little natural color, more so than Chris's ivory flesh though he knew they both glowed with color and vitality from the blood of a recent kill still flowing through their veins.

Chris smiled as he thought back to their last feed, a particularly slimy piece of dirt that liked to hunt down, rape and then murder women. It had been a pleasure to remove Bateman permanently from society, plus their intervention had saved Bateman's intended victim for that night. Still, Chris felt a slight twinge of conscience about their need to kill in order to survive, but he knew he and Vin had given Bateman a far less painful and more dignified death than the one he had intended for the woman he had cornered that night.

Despite the pallor of his flesh, Chris knew they would not need to feed again for many days. He recalled the fallacy of Vampire lore that said they would need to drain a victim each night of their endless life. Perhaps that was true of the newly created, especially while their bodies altered from mortal to wholly Vampire over those first few days, but after that most could survive on less than one kill a month. After a few centuries the need to feed would diminish even further until two or three victims a year would suffice.

If it had been any different then the Vampire race could not have survived, especially in this modern age where computers linked the globe, sharing information on mysterious events... and strange deaths.

Of course, there were those who fed out of pure pleasure rather than need. Much as a glutton stuffed cakes into his or her mouth, so these Vampires gorged themselves on human blood. For some it was the thrill of the hunt, for others the power of taking every memory along with every last droplet of blood from their victim, leaving a husk behind.

It pleased him that none of the Seven had succumbed to a lust for the kill, preferring to take a life only when they needed to feed, and even then only taking those who deserved death in a form of Frontier Justice. They each had their personal tastes though. Buck still enjoyed the ladies, loved to kiss them, hold them, and woo them, but never to drink from them. He saved his blood lust for those in the mortal world that preyed upon women so he would have approved of their last kill.

Chris pushed aside thoughts of killing as he saw Vin's long dark lashes flutter. Blue eyes opened wide, sparkling like sapphires held up against the rays of the sun, filled with an inner light that could be seen only with those possessing the Dark Gift.

Vin wasted no time, surging against Chris, tongue plundering Chris's mouth, strong fingers digging into him in possessive urgency. He thrust his hard, blood-filled shaft against Chris's groin, groaning in delight at the heightened pleasure of their joint coupling as it sang deliciously through their mind bond and through their blood. His mouth slid away, sharp incisors grazing Chris's shoulder and drawing blood that he lapped at greedily. Chris shuddered at the intensity of pleasure rippling through him as Vin sucked harder. He dropped his head to the juncture of Vin's shoulder and neck, teeth sinking into the cold flesh, sucking avidly as the metallic taste burst into his mouth, blood overflowing to trickle from the corner as they soared towards that tiny moment of precious oblivion.

Chris shuddered as the last sweet echoes of satisfaction rippled over him, tongue lapping at the ragged puncture marks on Vin's neck. He drew back and watched the skin heal miraculously before planting a gentle kiss on the now unblemished flesh. His mouth sought Vin's, and he grinned as Vin's agile tongue snaked out to clean away the trickle of blood that had run down Chris's chin.

They sprawled together across the large bed, unheeding of the stickiness lying between them; their limbs entwined as their minds glowed in the aftermath of their lovemaking. Although no lamps had been lit, Chris needed no light to see the pleasure and repletion etched upon his lover's face.

 _Forever,_ he whispered through their link, feeling the heat of Vin's answering echo even as Vin's cold arms embraced him tighter. He sighed in momentary contentment, and then memories of last night returned and he remembered Ella Gaines.

"Bitch," he snarled and he felt Vin's anger merge with his as he shared those long ago memories, reliving the pain of loss that had flared brightly once more.

Vin held him tighter, and Chris was grateful that Vin understood that this ancient pain of lost love was no danger to the love that they had shared since accepting Lestat's gift. He pulled away only when he sensed the others moving in the rooms beyond, and then rose swiftly to clean away the spent passion from his body before joining everyone in the anteroom.

An undercurrent of anger rolled beneath the calm exterior each of the others portrayed, and Chris was reminded once again of how lucky he had been on the day he decided to stop in that old frontier town. These men had stood beside him through good and bad ever since, never once failing him in his time of need, just as he would never fail them should the need arise.

Lestat swept into the room with Louis by his side, stopping in front of Chris. His gray-blue eyes were cold with anger but even with no link between them, Chris knew that anger was directed at another rather than at him.

"Cornelius," he spat out. "I should have foreseen he'd try something like this."

Lestat paced back and forth in agitation, his movements so fast that he would have been a blur to mortal eyes. "If we had known sooner then..." He stopped and turned back to Chris, his eyes sweeping over all those present in the room; he gave a harsh sign. "You cannot touch her, for doing so would condemn you to everlasting death as well." Lestat turned away, murmuring softly. "You will have to wait until the pact is no more... perhaps centuries."

"Centuries? That bitch doesn't deserve to live through this night let alone-"

Lestat snarled and, suddenly, Chris found he was caught between the hard stone wall and his slighter but amazingly powerful sire. Lestat's eyes blazed, his incisors bared as he whispered harshly into Chris's face.

"I have lost one child to Vampire justice." His face softened, eyes filling with sadness and love. "I would not lose you too, Christopher. You will not touch her."

His pale hand caressed Chris's cheek, gliding backwards through his hair to cup the back of his head. Chris felt the slightest pressure, his eyes closing as he accepted Lestat's words, allowing his head to be pushed down against his sire's bare throat.

"Drink from me," came a soft whisper, and Chris let his teeth puncture the hard, pale flesh, tasting the thick, dark red blood that welled from the cut. He could feel a strange power in the blood singing through his sire's veins, felt it vibrate into every cell of his own vampire being, nourishing him as no mortal blood had ever done.

Lestat pushed him away gently, and Chris licked at his lips as Lestat beckoned to Vin, drawing him into a similar embrace. Chris felt startlement ripple down the link he shared with Vin as Vin lapped at the blood welling from the puncture Chris had made. Pleasure swiftly followed, and only then did it occur to Chris that Lestat was sharing a gift from the now-deceased Queen of the Damned; the gift of her ancient and powerful blood that still held the essence of the original demon, Amel.

Finally, Lestat pushed Vin away, his eyes seeking Chris's. "You will not touch her," he repeated one last time, and then he left, but Louis lingered for a moment longer.

"He's right. With so few of us left, the old ones have decreed that any vampire who slays another shall forfeit their own life."

Louis pursed his lips and Chris felt the grief that poured from him as he recalled the child Vampire, Claudia. This same law had existed once before, and both she and Louis had been sentenced to death for attempting to slay Lestat. Louis had been sentenced to a slow and lingering death, walled up in the crypt beneath the Theater of the Vampires but he had escaped his fate. Claudia had not been so lucky. She and her newly made companion, Madeleine, had been sentence to daylight, their bodies turned to ash as the first rays of the dawn touched their vampire flesh.

"I would not wish to lose my two brothers."

Josiah stepped forward, a heavy frown lying upon his features. "What did Lestat mean, about Cornelius?"

Louis gave a wry smile. "Lestat has always been a... maverick. He drank from a mortal that Cornelius adored and had planned to sire for his eternal companion, and Cornelius swore his revenge." He moved to stand before Chris. "Lestat was so proud of you and Vincent that he boasted of your strength and beauty to all who would listen. Cornelius knew he could not touch Lestat, so he must have deliberately sought out this Ella Gaines in the belief that he could use her against Lestat... through you." He turned and walked away, pausing on the threshold. "I'm so sorry."

Chris shook his head as Louis disappeared, knowing that both Louis and Lestat were right. He couldn't touch her; not in this dark time in Vampire history. Not when there were so few of them left. In time their numbers would increase once more though Chris had no plans to add to their kind for he already had the companion that his heart and soul craved.

"Let's get the hell out of here."

The others murmured their agreement and, within moments, they were heading along the dark passageways that led up to the Great Hall. Once there they made their swift goodbyes and headed for the grand entrance hallway but Chris came to an abrupt halt as he saw a well-remembered and hated figure waiting for him. She was still as beautiful as he recalled, perhaps more so with her glowing dark eyes, glossy brown curls and ruby-red lips. He had not truly noticed until now, though, that her lips turned down naturally at the corners, giving her a sad expression, and he wondered whether it was this melancholy, lost look that had first attracted him to her.

She held out her hand to him, her eyes glistening with a hunger that she dared to call love.

"Chris."

A single word fell from those lips like a soft caress and he could feel her twisted desire for him, beckoning him to put aside the past and come to her as she had always wanted. Chris felt the disgust flood through him, felt tremors within his muscles as he itched to reach out and wrap his hands around her pale neck. Instead, he felt strong arms embrace him, turning him aside from her. Vin's hands moved possessively over his body, drawing him into a passionate kiss. He felt those agile, knowing fingers carding through his hair, felt the other hand slide over hipbone to cup one ass cheek, kneading the firm flesh beneath his tight black jeans. His body reacted to the intimacy of Vin's hard and wanting body pressed up against him, his shaft thickening, lengthening, grinding against his lover as the kiss flowed on without end.

A hiss of rage brought him back to his senses and, with passion-glazed eyes, he looked to where Ella stood watching them, seeing the fury mar her pretty face. Her sharp incisors had gnashed at her ruby lips, leaving furrows that welled with thick, red blood. Her brown eyes had turned as black as the deepest night, like bottomless pits that could lead only to Hell. Droplets of blood fell from her white, clenched fists where her cruel nails had dug into the palms, to splatter on the cold marble floor, but her hatred stabbed not at him but at Vin.

She turned away with preternatural speed; her gown billowing ghost-like as she raced away, and Chris laughed as he felt the satisfaction flooding into him through the link he shared with Vin. He looked into his lover's face and saw triumph. Perhaps they could not touch her at this time but there was no law of the Vampire that said they could not torment her with the knowledge that she had won nothing through her continued existence. If she had presumed to possess him, eternally, then she had misjudged both him and the power of the love he shared with Vin.

He would never be hers again.

****

**Three Days Later:**

Chris began to pace back and forth in the old saloon that the Seven once used to frequent on an almost daily--and nightly--basis. Vin had said he needed to meet with someone but had refused to say who and why, only that it would not take more than one or possibly two hours. However, that had been over six hours ago and now there were only a few hours left until dawn, and Vin was so far away that Chris could barely sense him through their link. All he knew was that Vin still lived--and nothing more.

"I don't like it. He said he'd be back in two hours-"

"Maybe he decided to stop for... refreshment." Ezra looked up from where he was dealing out a hand of solitaire but his uneasy smile proved the lack of conviction that had been missing in his voice.

"You know it ain't like Vin not to tell Chris if he was going to be delayed."

Nathan checked his cellphone for what seemed like the hundredth time but there were no messages. Chris watched as the others did likewise, partly grateful and partly frustrated by the small technological marvels that JD had insisted they all carry after the Calamity barely a week before. After those two days of fear, searching through the last known haunts of his friends in the hope of finding any of them alive, he had come to realize the true benefits of modern communications.

"Something's wrong. I can feel it." Chris made to leave but Buck reached out and snared his arm before he reached the long rusted and broken batwing door.

"Now, hold on there, Chris. Maybe he just got a little delayed-"

The faint ring of Chris's cellphone cut through the air, easily heard by sharp Vampire hearing and Chris snatched it from his pocket, expelling a breath of relief as he recognized the caller identity as Vin's.

"Vin! Where the-?" He stopped mid-tirade, a frown creasing his forehead, mouth slack in bewilderment. "Who is this? WHO IS THIS?"

He pulled the phone away from him and stared at it as if it had just grown arms and legs, and then he raised his eyes to the others, only just noticing that they had left their places to stand around him.

"Ella Gaines has got Vin... and she's got him staked out to meet the dawn."

"What the hell-"

Buck's exclamation was cut off as JD snatched the cellphone from Chris's grasp and began to play with the menus. For some reason he had found it easy to master this modern world of microchips and computers, using an innate skill to make certain the others understood this new world too. He drew out a black briefcase and opened it, attaching the cellphone to the expensive laptop contained within. With sudden clarity, Chris knew why JD had personally selected the cellphones they carried as the software began to triangulate on the signal it had received only moments before.

"Who was it, Chris?"

"Don't know. Just said... a friend."

"Won't be enough of a signal here to find an exact location, but I can narrow the search down." His voice trailed off as the program began to slowly contract towards the Eastern Seaboard. He glanced at his wristwatch and gave Chris a grave look. "The call came from close to Orlando... and it's dawn there in 54 minutes."

"Not enough time!" Josiah exclaimed in anger, slapping his big hand down hard onto the dust covered tabletop. The wood, rotted away from disuse, collapsed but Chris barely noticed. He was already airborne, racing against the rising sun. JD had narrowed down the search to the Florida coast and, once there, Chris would put all his faith into the link he shared with Vin to lead him straight to his lover.

The miles passed swiftly beneath him, and yet not fast enough for his liking. He knew JD had been right for the bond between him and Vin slowly strengthened as the miles between them diminished.

Five minutes remained as he flew high over the still sleeping city of Orlando. He let his gut feelings guide him, flying towards the barren swamplands filled with alligators, leading to where the mortals sent off their space shuttles.

Two minutes.

Ahead were the sandy beaches--and Vincent Tanner. He could sense his lover strongly now. He could hear Vin's cry of fury as he tried to repel Chris, knowing he could not reach him before the first fingers of dawn crept across the ocean to touch the sandy beach where he lay within bonds too tight for even his immortal strength to break.

One minute.

Chris landed upon the sand beside Vin, hands tearing at the bonds that held his lover securely. They started to give, freeing first one hand and then another--and then Chris screamed as the sun's first ray struck his back, feeling his skin blister and burn beneath his clothing yet still he struggled with Vin's bonds, the shadow he cast protecting his lover as best he could.

Vin whimpered as weak sunlight found his legs, the stench of burning flesh filling the air, but then he was free. More flesh began to burn as the sun's rays grew stronger, blistering away from the bone, their hair singeing and crinkling under light unnatural to their kind.

Using the last of his strength, Chris dragged Vin up into his arms and together they raced towards the sand dunes, frantically digging deep into the soft earth as the terrible sun rose behind them.

Their cries of pain slowly died as they fell into daytime sleep, held close against each other's badly burned bodies.

****

Chris awoke to excruciating pain but it seemed unimportant compared to the mental anguish he felt as he looked upon the ruined face of his lover. The skin had peeled away revealing white bone; the beautiful locks had been burned away leaving blackened tufts of frizzy hair. One piercing sapphire eye was fixed upon him but the other was milky white, seared by sunlight, and yet Vin had never looked so beautiful to him at that moment for he was alive.

Chris knew he had fared worse; knowing there was little flesh left on his back, and even less on his scalp. His cheek was hollowed; his teeth rattling against burned and receded gums like a mummified corpse in a museum.

But he was not dead--and neither was Vin--yet he could not understand how that could be possible. The sunlight should have destroyed them both within seconds and yet they still clung to immortal life. He felt Vin's anger seething through their link, and saw it reflected in the single eye that beheld him, but Chris had no doubt in his mind that he had done the right thing.

For a moment he thought of Sarah and Adam, burning to death within the home he had built for them. How long had he wished he had been there, to join them in death if he could not save them? But they had died beyond his reach.

Vin was his life now, and more precious to him now than his mortal wife and child had been. Without him the endless nights, stretching into eternity, would have been unbearable. He knew it would have been better for him to die in the cold light of the dawn by Vin's side than to endure the centuries, perhaps millennia, alone.

Vin's eye closed and he gave a shuddering sigh, knowing that he could not condemn Chris his choice when he would have made the same one given a twist in their circumstances.

"We need to feed, Chris." His voice was raw, vocal chords partly destroyed by the searing sunlight.

"So weak... not sure... I can move."

"Sun's been down a while. Half the night's gone... and we got to feed if..." Vin's words tapered off as he concentrated hard. He gave a harsh gasp. "Nathan?"

Chris tried to focus inward but could sense no one other than Vin, and even that link was tenuous within his damaged body, but Nathan was his child so he would not have been able to sense him easily. However, he did hear the sound of earth being scraped away from above their heads, and he blinked away the dirt from his ravaged face as moonlight bathed him. Dark skin shone with a satin glow, white teeth as brilliant as any sun shining down on them in relief as Nathan reached down to pull them into his strong arms.

Others came and caught hold of him and Vin, and Chris bit back his cry of pain as Nathan carried him in gentle arms, knowing Josiah held Vin.

"They need to feed."

"Got that covered, Nathan." Buck's voice seemed almost breathless as he landed softly beside them with a squirming mortal held in his steel embrace. He dropped the man down beside Chris. "Not your usual nasty fare but bad enough that no one would miss him."

A twinge of guilt filled Chris as he sank his teeth into the man's exposed inner thigh, and then the heady scent of blood filled the air and his mouth, along with memories so dark and cold that Chris's regrets fled. The man had been a member of a street gang, mugging old ladies and robbing stores, fighting and killing others indiscriminately--innocent and guilty alike--in the name of his gang colors.

The man stopped struggling as his strength failed him, whimpering softly as he edged towards his death.

Chris raised his eyes, the only parts of him untouched by sunlight as he had desperately tried to shield them at the time, knowing that he would need his sight to find a safe haven for him and Vin. He saw Vin lying close by, draining blood from a puncture mark in the man's inner arm.

As he watched, the blood worked its magic, renewing damaged skin, repairing Vin's eye. His hair began to grow slowly though it was obvious that one kill between them would not be enough to repair all the damage they had sustained during that dawn. However, it was enough to ease the terrible pain and to strengthen his limbs so he could hunt for another worthless mortal to sustain his and Vin's continued existence.

"If we leave now then we will reach Lestat's exquisite mansion in New Orleans well before dawn."

Chris fell back from the drained husk, licking at his trembling lips and nodded slowly. He tried to stand on still shaky legs but Nathan's arms caught him.

"On no, you don't, Chris. We can carry you and Vin easy enough, and probably move a whole lot faster for it."

"You saying we ain't fast enough for you, Nate?"

Nathan grinned back down at Vin. "You're both fast enough on a good day... but this ain't been one of your best... excepting for still being alive, that is. Though Lord knows how you managed that one."

Chris frowned as a thought came to him. "The Queen's blood," he said aloud.

Vin nodded slowly, understanding the significance and Chris wondered if Lestat had known something like this would happen to them. It would explain the rare gift of his blood to them, blood that had once flowed through the veins of the Queen of the Vampires.

They completed the journey to New Orleans swiftly, finding a welcome from Lestat as they were swiftly ushered inside. With dawn approaching fast, the others felt the pull of sleep and descended into dark places to sleep away the daylight hours, but not before they had gently cleaned their damaged sires and then laid Chris on a soft bed with Vin tucked up against his side.

As he slid down into much needed sleep, Chris became aware of Lestat standing above them, accompanied by others of their kind. His heavy lidded eyes recognized the brooding Latin visage of Armand and the patrician features of Marius and, for the second time in a week, he heard Lestat's voice follow him into sleep.

"Sleep well, my children. Tonight you will grow stronger... and then we will see Vampire justice carried out."

****

Two days later Chris stood beside Vin, feeling the tingle of a fresh kill flowing through his veins. All trace of the sun's destructive caress had gone from his body, and his skin glowed with a vitality and warmth from the blood he had taken that night. He gazed at Vin, seeing the golden hue of his healed flesh and the twinkle in his gem-blue eyes.

"What's going on, Cowboy?" he whispered softly.

"Not a clue."

Chris had no idea why they had all been summoned back to the Great Hall in Bavaria but he could sense an air of outrage surrounding them on all sides. A commotion from the main entrance had him turning to discover its cause, and he snarled when he saw Ella Gaines being escorted into the hall.

Lestat placed a restraining hand upon his shoulder and bade him to wait and watch.

Maharet stepped forward, her red-hair cascading about her white shoulders like a wreath of living flame. Despite being almost as old as the first Vampire to walk this Earth, she had not fallen into a state of disinterest, becoming no more than a living statue as had Akasha and her consort, Enkil. She had spent more than six millennia walking the Earth, taking interest in its growth and watching over her mortal descendants. She had been instrumental in the death of the old Queen and the continuance of the Vampire race, and she had been the one to demand the rule that no Vampire shall take the life of another Vampire.

Many millennia ago, while still mortal, her eyes had been put out by Akasha, but she had discovered that mortal eyes could give her back the gift of sight, albeit temporarily.

Her borrowed eyes gleamed with unearthly coldness as she stared hard at Ella Gaines, and Chris knew the powerful Vampire was taking what she wanted from Ella's mind. He frowned when Maharet turned towards him, taking a sharply indrawn breath as her strong mind stabbed into him, extracting all that had passed between him and Ella over his lifetime as both mortal and Vampire. Vin's grip on Chris's arm tightened abruptly as she turned to him, his fingers biting deep into muscle as Maharet probed his mind too.

She turned her back on all of those present then looked to Armand with just the slightest dip of her head.

A ripple of shock swept over those present as the scythe he carried swished through the air. Ella's body stood erect for several seconds after her head was severed from it, and then crumpled to the floor. Her head rolled almost to Chris's feet, her shocked brown eyes looking up at him... and then all of her turned to dust, a strange breeze whipping through the hall, blowing the remnants away until no trace of her existence remained.

Chris felt a lifetime of pain lift from his shoulders, barely comprehending that he had finally seen justice meted out for Sarah and Adam--and for Vin. He felt Vin's arms encircle him, felt the presence of his friends closing in around him, but found his eyes raising to the beautiful, red-haired twin sister of the new Queen of the Damned.

It was over.

For more than a century he had desired revenge for the terrible act of violence made upon his family, and just when he believed that this would never be granted to him, Ella had let her twisted, obsessed and violent mind condemn her for all eternity. He was free at last. He was free from the fear of Ella Gaines taking away all that he loved most in this world though her unwholesome obsession that had followed him through the years.

With a silent cry of gratitude, he turned away knowing that, if the fates were kind, then he could look forward to endless nights with Vincent Tanner--the companion of his heart and soul--by his side... forever.

THE END


End file.
